Leon Edwards might be fighting Kamaru Usman for the UFC welterweight title at UFC 278 this weekend, but Jorge Masvidal is still gunning for a grudge match against the Englishman. Masvidal told MMAFighting that he doesn’t see Edwards capturing the title, and wants to fight Leon Edwards to settle a long-standing beef between the two.
“I don’t [see Leon Edwards winning] to tell you the truth. It’s a fight, anything can happen. There’s no 1,000 percent winning for anybody in this sport. I don’t care if you’re undefeated. It’s just a matter of time. I think Usman wins more times than Leon wins if they were to fight five times.
Masvidal Wants Leon Edwards Next, Predicts Usman Win at UFC 278
I think [Usman] is a little more complete, and at the end of the day, just the wrestling, it will come down to the wrestling.
On the feet, Leon’s a little bit more polished, maybe a little bit more variety with setups or attacks, but Usman’s wrestling, I think he’ll keep Leon honest to where he won’t open up as he would with a lot of guys. I see Usman winning.”
Jorge Masvidal’s grudge against Leon Edwards dates back to UFC London in 2019. A backstage altercation between Masvidal and Edwards saw “Gamebred” hitting Edwards, which he later dubbed a “three piece and a soda”. The bad blood between the two has endured ever since. Masvidal feels that Edwards, a striker, is a great matchup for him, considering his current three-fight losing streak against wrestling-oriented fighters.
“I think naturally I’m faster than him. I know I’m smarter than him. I have more power. We’ve fought a lot of common opponents and he couldn’t do anything to them but give them a split decision. I put those same guys on stretchers.
I do worry well with the strikers as everybody knows. It’s like those wrestlers, those guys who have wrestled since they were 7 years old. They can take me out of my comfort zone, put me on my back and not allow me to use all my tools where I have some problems.
Leon’s not that guy. He doesn’t have that next level wrestling or endurance. I know he takes a lot of guys down, but the caliber of takedowns and the opponents that he does it to, it’s not me so I don’t see his grappling being a problem for me. The striking, I welcome it. Let’s find out. Let’s go.”
Is Masvidal’s prediction right? Should we see Masvidal vs Edwards next? Let us know what you think in the comments.
